Go Directly to Free Parking

Noelle Blair, Staff Reporter

Noelle_Blair@csumb.edu

May 8, 2008

Shortly before spring break, I jokingly

told some friends that I should try to

go the semester without buying a

parking permit since I had not done

so yet, and had not received a parking

ticket. Because I have a tendency

to be both stubborn and arrogant, I

went against my better judgment and

ignored the school’s parking rules.

It was not the first time I tried this.

Last spring, after I had moved my North

Quad permit to my new car, it flew out

the window as I drove down Highway 1.

For the final two months of the semester,

I was without a parking permit and I did

not receive one citation. Also, I never

bought a main campus permit, yet I

always drove to class if I had to go up to

buildings 45-49.

Before I discuss some tricks I have

learned, let me offer this disclaimer.

The easiest thing to do is to just buy

a parking permit. Despite my stellar

record in parking cheapness, I did get

ticketed this semester. So far, I have

received four parking citations. Do not

blame me if you try these tips and get

ticketed anyway.

Buy a daily permit once a

week. If you never take them off

of your dashboard you will amass

a collection of disorganized little

papers. Also, do not buy them from

the machines that print the date and

time. My experience with the meter

maids is that they usually do not try

to sort out all of the papers.

If you do get ticketed, do not remove

the citation from your windshield.

Usually, the parking people will move

on if they see you already have a

ticket. I think it is kind of like dogs

marking their territory. However,

much like a dog’s scent fades from

trees, so does the bright yellow of the

parking ticket and unless you luck out

with a color blind meter maid, they

will likely soon notice that the lemon

yellow ticket is white.

Above all else, remember that

unless you are playing Monopoly,

there likely is no such thing as

free parking.